The National Capital Region is blessed with fantastic photographers. On my personal blog alone, I have linked to more than a 100 local photo-blogs, and am confident that there are many more sites, (perhaps even hundreds), that I have not seen yet. To showcase some of this great visual talent, we are posting a two-part series on photo-blogs. Part one begins today by looking at three local photographers, while part two will be published next Saturday.
Scott H. Wilson
Photo by Scott H. Wilson
It has been said that photography is a picture painted by the sun. If this is true, then a talented photographer is someone who can capture the solar “hand” of the sky as it paints its living masterpiece.
This thought crossed my mind while thinking about the gorgeous work of Scott Wilson. Originally from the Toronto area, he moved to the National Capital Region about 1 ½ years ago to follow his girlfriend who is doing her PhD at the University of Ottawa.
Currently living in Hull, his popular tumblr blog contains a stunning collection of images that capture the natural landscape in our region. For instance, consider these wonderful photos from a stroll in Gatineau Park, or these breathtaking shots from the Champlain Bridge on the Ottawa River.
Photo by Scott H. Wilson
“I want to get out and shoot every day in order to get better,” says Wilson, who takes a good portion of his photographs while walking his dog. “I try to pick a different spot (each day) to walk.”
Wilson says that he aims to tell a narrative in his shots, rather than surrendering the lens to a specific subject. “The photographers that I follow are like that,” he says. “They are not about pose shots or portraits, they tell a story.”
While most of Wilson’s work focuses on nature, he does shoot urban landscapes, such as the photo above. You can see more of his urban images here and here. If you want to know more about his work and/or hire him for a shoot, you can go to his professional web site or follow him on Twitter.
In the meantime, here are more examples of his fantastic work: these winter photos are so vivid you can feel the snow; the fiery colours of autumn sparkle here; the joy of summer is alive here.
Chris Vanderwees (Street Photography and Other Snaps)
Photo by Chris Vanderwees
The soul of a city can be found in its music halls, restaurants, art galleries and bedrooms. If you want to see a city’s face, however, then you can turn to the street, which is arguably the only place in society where all classes, ages, ethnic groups and personalities cross paths.
Chris Vanderwees’ wonderful photo-blog is like a mirror reflecting Ottawa’s visage. In his fantastic collection of street shots, he captures the full palette of personalities that traverse through the Glebe, Centretown, Golden Triangle and Rideau Street neighbourhoods.
“I see people from all walks of life,” says Vanderwees, who is a PhD candidate in Carleton University’s English Department. “There are people who are pretty poor to people who are well off. Different ages and different professions.”
Photo by Chris Vanderwees
Having first received a camera at the age of ten, the 29-year-old decided to chronicle the various characters that he saw while walking in the street after working on his thesis.
His images range from the touching (see the two women embracing and kissing on the cheek above), to the quirky/hip (see man with the glasses on the left), to the disturbing (see anti-abortion protestor below).
Photo by Chris Vanderwees
When asked how people respond to his camera, he replies that it varies. “The spectrum of reaction is interesting,” he tells me. “Some people are indifferent, while others will have the patience to let me take a half-a-roll of film.”
While observing his work, I felt as if I was becoming better acquainted with my fellow Ottawa residents. Whether it’s drug users, hipsters, the homeless, business owners, buskers, lovers or friends, his photos make you feel like you are strutting beside him, interacting with the wide range of personalities in the city. The non-judgmental tone of the pictures also appeals to me, as they allow the subjects to be who they are, with their unvarnished glory and faults.
While Vanderwees’ blog is a labour of love, he says it might be possible to put out a photography book with a small publisher in the future. For the time being, however, he is content to continue chronicling the city’s inhabitants as they live their day-to-day lives.
Brian Brooks
Photo of heavy horse show, Carp Fair, by Brian Brooks
It’s tempting when writing about art to pigeonhole people into distinct categories. In the case of photography, one can classify images as landscapes, portraits, abstract shots, street photography or countless other genres.
If we resist the urge to define, however, and let photographs speak for themselves, we can sometimes discover that a single person can cover a lot of ground with a camera lens. As a case in point, consider the tumbler site of photographer Brian Brooks, whose wide ranging work cannot be described in a single category.
Photo by Brian Brooks
Originally from Texas, the longtime Ottawa resident shoots everything from thoughtful profiles (see here), to intriguing rock formations (see here), to artistic shots that turn mundane objects into abstract forms (see left), to interesting urban landscapes (see discussion of Texas below). The location of his pictures also vary, as he has taken shots from such places as Mexico, Australia, Texas, Montreal and Ottawa.
“For a lot of the abstract stuff I walk down the street and it just happens,” says Brooks, when asked how he tackles different subject matters. “When it comes to portraits it’s planned.”
One of the things that I particularly love about his work is a series of recent photos that he took while travelling in his native Texas. These photos include beautiful images, such as his shot of the the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame in Fort Worth Texas, which can be seen below (original here), to haunting shots of small towns in Texas that have been hard hit by the recession.
Photo by Brian Brooks
“You could see the impact of the economic downturn,” says Brooks, as he recalls his Texas trip. “Many stores on the main streets where closed down.”
While reflecting on his voyage to the Lone Star State, he made reference to a photograph of a church parking lot (see here for photo). In the image, there is a parking spot that is labelled “handicapped” and which lies below three crosses. The parking spot for the pastor, in contrast, is located a bit to the side.
This image, says Brooks, represents for him the religious idea that the weakest members of society should be looked after, a thought that comes to mind when thinking of the brutal economic impact that many regions in the United States have recently suffered. This analysis, however, is unusual for Brooks, as he normally shies away from defining his photographs.
“I don’t want to tell you want it means,” he says when asked to comment on his work. “I don’t want to ruin it for you.” This is another thing I like about his photos, namely, that he completely trusts his audience to make their own judgements.
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